It's a little hard to grasp that life as I know it will be changing significantly in a few days. Whilst some people are used to constant flux in their lives, I'm definitely a fan of a bit of stability, so the pending upheaval of sorts has me a little nervous, but the excited kind of nervous. I'll definitely miss parts of the routine I've had for the past few years: waking up leisurely and riding my bike twenty minutes over potholes and railroad tracks and past taco trucks on West Grand to work; seeing familiar faces and friends each morning and letting my sarcasm run rampant without fear of offending those around me; gulping down cup of coffee after cup of coffee after cup of coffee; stepping out onto the balcony at my office and seeing the Golden Gate shimmering in the distance...this company has been good to me in many ways for years, and I am thankful for that, but it's time to move on.

I'll be heading up to Boonville next Tuesday afternoon to spend the evening with my friend Tressa who just started working as the kitchen manager and head chef at the Highland Horse Ranch. She and I are, indeed, meant to be friends...we met volunteering in the kitchens at CUESA and had an immediate connection. Soon thereafter, we learned that we have the exact same birthday!! We're planning to eventually spearhead a non-elitist movement focusing on outdoor adventures in local food foraging and preparation. With the continued politicization and globalization of our food supply, focusing on local bounty will progressively become more integral! Mark my words :) Here's Tressa gulping a jug of cider to that!

After a night in Boonville, well, Philo to be exact, I'll hop back on the road and head up to Hoopa! I expect I'll see some lovely redwoods along the way and that I'll find at least one greasy roadside diner at which I can sit and have a cup of joe. Wednesday night I'll arrive at the farm - and there I will spend the next month :)
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While I have no illusions that I'll have all that much free time in Hoopa, I am looking forward to being able to *think.* Life here in Oakland has become so busy and energized, which I absolutely thrive on and love for the most part, but I need a periodic zoom out to put things in perspective, and I think that my time working on the farm will provide that. Although I've adapted to the sounds of motorcycyles revving up and drunken bar-goers laughing loudly on the street below, I'm looking forward to maybe...hearing the wind blow through some trees, the river flowing over some rocks, or a cricket chirping again...the little things; I really really miss them.

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I'm hoping that up North, I'll be able to recharge my batteries and sharpen my focus a little bit. There is so much to be done here in Oakland, as well as in the suddounding cities in terms of improving our food system, and I just want to get my hands in there and start working, already! I have been ravenously applying for jobs, and I'm hoping that at least one will come through. If any of you reading this know of an opportunity, do let me know! In the interim, I plan to work with OBUGS in their summer program; there are some kids I've met through volunteering that I've become good friends with and it will be fun to spend more time with them! We're planning field trips up to Tilden and Lake Anza, to u-pick fruit stands, to the beach...my kinda fun, for sure! More later...